• Eat as the path of the sun!

    This quote falls just before my Eat section in my book. Thank you Virginia for your sound advice. For most of us we dine well in the evening …but during the day our food choices are often rather reactionary and low in vitality/ rather beige. After our evening meal we often get a second wind. We feel focussed for the first time that day. We have energy for the first time that day too. I often say to clients ‘how different would you feel if you had your evening meal at the start the day?’ Breakfast and lunch are even more important than our evening dining. They are crucial to…

  • My new book is now available !

    Hugely excited to announce that my new book The Natural Menopause Method: a nutritional guide to perimenopause and beyond, is now available to order from Bookshop.org, Amazon, WH Smith and Waterstones. The illustrated guidebook includes lots of simple shifts to help us regain balance in our modern day turbo charged world, plus a vast troubleshooting section with all the latest evidence based research from the world of nutritional science (it was always incredibly important to me to show the evidence behind my recommendations) as well as a look at key foods and supplements that really work. In the book I discuss why we need a therapeutic diet at perimenopause not…

  • Do you suffer with “Kuchisabishii”? When you eat even when you’re not hungry because your mouth is ‘lonely’

    We very rarely feel true hunger these days. Instead we are often ruled by emotional hunger which is often not satisfied by food, however much we eat. The concept of ‘eating your emotions’ or as the Japanese saying goes not wanting our mouth to be ‘lonely’. Do you eat for any of these reasons?boredomrewardanxietysadnessfearlonelinesscommiseration These are classic emotional eating cues which are very different to physical hunger which builds gradually, is satisfied by eating, occurs after a time has past since your last meal. The way I approach rewiring our feelings of emotional hunger is to stay one step ahead of those emotional rollercoasters where feelings of guilt or shame…

  • The importance of protein at perimenopause

    Let me introduce you to Laverie Valee, also known ‘Charmion’, one of the world’s first strong women as they used to be called. What a hat! I thought she was rather apt for my perimenopause protein post. Protein is the building block of the body – including the immune system, hormones and lean muscle. There are 9 ESSENTIAL amino acids (proteins) that we must get from our diet. And this is why quality protein sources (eggs, oily fish, fish, lean meats, quinoa, pulses, tofu, nuts and seeds) are SO SO important at perimenopause (well at any time really)…look are how important they are to thwart perimenopause symptoms: 1. Phenylalanine –…

  • What causes that stubborn weight gain at peri menopause?

    That fat round the middle seems to appear out of nowhere and all our tired and tested ways to get back into shape we used in our 20s and 30s just don’t work anymore! The reason? Our changing hormones. The main hormones related to this sudden weight gain are oestrogen, insulin, thyroid and cortisol. Oestrogen: At peri menopause which can start even in our late 30s our oestrogen and progesterone ratio start to shift. Lowing oestrogen can make us more insulin resistent and our hunger hormone ghrelin has been shown to increase during this time – so more cravings! We can also be oestrogen dominant if we have longer cycles…

  • 90 Day Midlife Reset

    Welcome to my 90 day reset designed to help you find a renewed sense of vitality at midlife! I love the Traditional Chinese Medicine concept of Yang Sheng – Live well, live long. Why should we compromise this at peri menopause and beyond? My 90 Day Midlife Reset will help you experience: Less severe peri menopause symptoms Weight loss (especially around the middle) More energy Greater lifeload tolerance Less mood swings Less cravings Restorative sleep Better digestion Better skin, stronger hair and nails A reconnection with cooking A kitchen and supplement overhaul My approach It’s all about REALISITIC shifts. You will still be able to function in the real world…

  • Why do I keep waking up at 3am?

    According to Chinese Medicine the organs of the body run on a 24hr clock too. Certain times of day relate to busy times for them. Waking up at certain time of the night could suggest that a little TLC is needed for that particular organ. 9pm-11pm – adrenals. These little glands that sit on top of the kidneys are in charge of producing our stress hormones – cortisol, adrenaline and noradrenaline. If you get wired and tired at this time, it’s likely that your cortisol production is too high (it should be the lowest here to bring on restful sleep). 11pm-1am – gallbladder. In charge of emulsifying fats and getting…